Loop Looks

Blazer – Macy’s (similar) | Shirt – Old Navy (similar) | Pants – Gap (similar) | Heels – Macy’s (similar)

Total outfit cost = $98

Today is the Third Thursday link-up at Work Clothes, I Suppose and I had grand plans of recreating an outfit that Bri herself had inspired me to wear. However, I totally failed and recreated the wrong red pants outfit! Instead, I put together an outfit similar to one I saw last fall on Lily Says Go.  Either way, it’s red pants and a camel blazer with leopard shoes. I just wore chambray instead of my gold polka dot top. And now I have that outfit to look forward to!

Anyway, today’s Third Thursday theme is “Work Wear”. Considering I wear what I think of as “work wear” every day, this isn’t a stretch. But I think the fact that I paired two pieces that could be considered slightly casual (cropped pants, chambray-ish shirt) but added heels and a blazer that my outfit is work appropriate without being traditional.

I mean, I own several suits (and have even worn them on the blog on occasion) but I think that’s an easy cop-out! One of my goals for this blog is to help women dress for work without feeling constrained by traditional work outfits! So, wear those red pants, add those leopard heels, wear something other than black! You can do it, I promise.

Also linking up with Mix & Match Fashion.

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Taking a quick break from this week’s 5 Days, 5 Ways challenge to share this story with you.

Last month a bunch of my Chicago Running Blogger friends and I  met up for a quick run before drinking ourselves silly at the Half Acre Brewery tour. I didn’t do a write-up on my running blog but if you’re curious, there are quite a few write-ups from my friends who didn’t fall asleep on the couch when they got home after all that beer.

The highlight (and the reason I’m writing this post) of the tour was drinking three pints of beer in about an hour after very little food.  We got a little giddy and the group decided that we loved our tour guide’s hipster outfit pictured above and wanted to recreate it.  “Host a link-up, Erin!” They said.  So here we are.

Chambray shirt – Old Navy (similar)| Lace shirt – The Limited (similar) | Pants – The Limited (similar) | Shoes – Anne Klein | Belt – The Limited (similar)| Necklaces – gift & post-race swag

Of course, I went with an office-appropriate version so it’s more preppy than hipster. But what about my blogger buddies?  Check out their interpretations below.

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Shirt – Target (similar) | Tank – The Limited (similar) | Skirt – The Limited (similar) | Shoes – Karen Scott via Macy’s (similar) | Necklace – JC Penney (similar)

For everyone who guessed the necklace in yesterday’s post as my Take One and Pass It On item, you win!  Not sure what you win.  Bragging rights, maybe?  Anyway, yes, I chose to wear the necklace again.  It’s such a statement piece so I wanted to show how it could be toned down a bit.

However, the rest of my outfit just isn’t working for me.  I think I just prefer to wear black shoes when I wear black tights.  The shoes are just jarring to my eyes.  I think there’s just a big too much going on in this outfit for me.  Thoughts?

Also, what do you think I’ll be wearing from today’s outfit tomorrow?

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Blazer – ?? (similar) | Shirt – Old Navy (similar) | Belt – The Limited (similar) | Pants – The Limited (similar) | Shoes – Ann Klein (similar)

Pairing the polka dot chambray shirt with these plaid pants has been an outfit on my mind for a few months.  I loved the idea of mixing the two patterns but breaking it up by wearing the tan blazer over the top.  A great way to do pattern mixing is to do two subtle prints but add in some solids so you don’t look too crazy.

I even mentioned wanting to wear this outfit the last time I paired these plaid pants with a plain chambray shirt.  Yes, I own two chambray shirts.  No, I don’t think that’s too many.   Chambray is just so versatile.  Wear it with black jeans and boots and a scarf and you have a casual weekend outfit.  Pair it with dress pants and a blazer and you’re ready to attend a monthly meeting of your professional organization (at least, that’s what I’m doing today.  Your mileage may vary).

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First thing’s first: have you taken the one year anniversary reader survey yet??

Blazer – J. Crew | Striped top – The Limited | Chambray top – Old Navy (similar) | Jeans – The Limited | Boots – Bandolino (similar) | Necklace – JF&A Show (similar)

In the apartment building where my husband and I live there are three floors of parking.  Jason and I park our car on the second floor.  But after taking outfit photos there last week we decided to check out the third floor to see if there was anything interesting there.  We felt like parking structure interlopers trespassing on floor three!  Of course we weren’t really trespassing.

Turns out that apparently floor three is where all the people with swanky vehicles park.  There were at least two Porsches, a big honkin’ Harley, a Pontiac GTO and this Ducati.  I don’t know much about motorcycles but my husband informed me that a Ducati is an expensive bike.  I just thought it made a good backdrop to my incredibly preppy outfit.

This outfit is also a copy of a photo that has been floating around Pinterest for awhile.

I have no idea what the original source of this photo is (I even used Google Image Search to try and figure it out).  But I do know that many, many people have pinned it or blogged it so my outfit isn’t all that original.  But I’m down with that.  I think it’s great to see different people and different body types copy an outfit so you can see what it looks like on everyone.  And, of course, unless you have the EXACT same pieces as the original outfit you’re going to put your own spin on it.  And that’s the whole fun of using a photo to get inspired.

I never would have worn this many layers before seeing this photo but now that I have it’s a look I’m enjoying.  Especially in the winter when layers are key to keeping warm!

Linking up with 235 Designs | Texas Lovebirds | Long Distance Loving

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Shirt – Target (similar) | Pants- The Limited (similar) | Belt – The Limited (similar) | Shoes – Bandolino | Watch – JF&A Tradeshow (similar) | Vest (below) – Express via Poshmark (similar)

The original plan was to wear my camel colored blazer with this outfit.  But, really, I would have been too warm and the rolled sleeves on the top just weren’t working with it.  So, I have grand plans to recreate this outfit with my polka dot chambray top at another time and wear the blazer with that.

In the mean time, since it’s still strangely warm in Chicago I was able to get away with just wearing my fur vest!  Crazy.  Also, I wanted to point out that this is yet another outfit that I would have never thought to create with my plaid pants.  Chambray and plaid?  It seems so obvious now.  Breaking out of your “these pants go with this top” routine can lead to some really fun outfits.

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Blazer – Macy’s (old) | Blouse – Old Navy | Jeans – The Limited (similar) | Shoes – Bandolino via Macy’s | Watch – Fossil | Bracelet – Gift (Joe Fresh) | Earrings – Stitch Fix

Jeans plus a blazer may become my new Friday uniform.  It’s just really hard to go wrong with this combination.  The jeans keep it Friday casual but the blazer keeps it looking professional.  I recommend every one have at least one blazer in their closet.

This particular blazer I bought YEARS ago.  In fact, I even have a picture of me from 2007 wearing it.

Not that you can really tell since that’s a scan of a newspaper article about my previous job from 5 years ago.  But, I promise you, it’s the same blazer.

I didn’t spend very much money for it.  And sometimes I’m concerned that it looks kind of cheap.  But it fits so well and it’s so comfy that I’m hesitant to try and replace it.  I suppose, though, now that I know how much wear I can get out of a tan or camel blazer that I could start the search for a more upscale version.

What’s the oldest piece of clothing you still wear on a regular basis?

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Top – Target | Jeans – AG Adriano Goldschmied via Bloomingdale’s | Scarf – The Limited | Necklace – NY & Co | Rain boots – Kamik via Zappos | Flats – Lucky Brand via Marshall’s

Look.  If it’s going to rain during the work week I’d much prefer it rain on Friday.  That way I can wear jeans!  Rainy days make me want to dress comfy.  So my rules for rainy days are:

1.  Wear jeans you can tuck into your rain boots or a skirt or dress. Soaking wet cuffs are never fun.

2.  Have some fun with your rain boots.  They should be comfy but why not get them in a fun pattern?  Chances are you won’t be wearing them all day so show a little spunk on your commute.

3. Feel good in your outfit.  Rain can make you want to curl up on the couch in your pajamas, not go to work.  So put on some of your favorite pieces that will make you want to get out the door and show off.

Also, you may have noticed I’m wearing white after Labor Day.  I love these jeans.  They can be tucked into my rain boots.  This outfit can be accessorized a million ways from Sunday.  So it fits all my criteria.  Bah I say to the no white rule!

P.S.  Thanks for all the suggestions on yesterday’s post! I’m planning to rework this outfit in the near future.

P.P.S.  Last night’s Fashion’s Night Out fashion show at Macy’s State Street was a blast!  Thanks to Corals and Cognacs for letting us know about it.   I got some fun outfit ideas (printed pants, anyone?) and had fun hanging out with Molly and Heather.  Plus I finally got an opportunity to wear shorts and heels which is something I’ve been dying to do for awhile.

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Shirt – Old Navy | Skirt – New York & Co | Shoes – Target | Necklace – JF&A Expo

It was rough getting out of bed this morning.  I had a great weekend hanging out with a ton of bloggers (too many to list!), running a 5K race, talking about books and blogging, drinking too much wine, and trying a new restaurant with my family.

So I put on my pink skirt and a new top from Old Navy to brighten up my day.  I’ve been wanting to wear chambray with this pink skirt for awhile and my new polka dot chambray shirt seemed like the perfect addition.  A little playful, a little classic, a little dressy and a little casual.  Perfect for what we consider in my office to be the last week of summer.

How did you spend your weekend?

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Dress – Marshall’s | Blouse – Target | Watch – Fossil | Bracelet – Kristin Hassan | Shoes – Lucky Brand via Marshall’s

It’s You Pick Wednesday again and this week you chose the denim and lace look!

Source

I admit, this outfit may be a tad bit too casual for the office but I’m able to pull it off because A. it’s summer B. I don’t have any meetings and C. my bosses are out of the office.

Still, for those of you who can’t wear sleeveless to the office, throwing a blouse over the top and tying it at the waist is a nice alternative to a cardigan.

And my bracelet?  I’ve been craving a wrap bracelet since they came on the scene earlier this year.  Kristin Hassan was having a sale at the end of July so I snatched up two of these babies.  Although, to be honest, they’re not that expensive at regular price for the quality!

Finally, while I work on a reader request post, I had so much fun seeing what you guys voted on, that we’re doing it again for next Wednesday!

Don’t forget, I’m also always looking for reader requests or suggestions so hit me up either in a comment, by emailing looplooks@gmail.com or on Facebook or Twitter!

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